On the Summit’s Horizon: Courageous Healing
By: Rev. Christopher W. Riley
FWIS Contributing Writer
What is in a name? “We needed a name that will fit the cause. A name that focuses on healing and restoration boldly,” said Aaron and Janell Lane, visionaries of Courageous Healing, 2013 South Anthony Boulevard, Fort Wayne.
“Courageous Healing was born out of necessity to fill a gap in the community. We saw the need in the community and God said when are you going to move your feet?”
“We live at the intersection of culturally sensitive and being trauma informed.” The Lane’s who would be considered a “power couple” speak in response to their impact on the community and make no apologies about this work being divinely ordered. A divine order has required Aaron and Janell to take an introspective view of one’s spiritual foundation.
Aaron shared, “I needed to know who I was in Christ beyond sports.”
Janell posed the question, “How do I become someone who is truly in service? There is a process of dying to oneself. God, take me through my process so I can be a true vessel.”
“This is a ministry. The work is a ministry. We are disciples as therapists and support staff. The work is mutli-layered. No two days are the same. We must show up authentically.”
The Lane’s have become advocates for multicultural populations in different ways. “We never knew we were going to impact the funding sector. Being a resource for the professionals of color. We had a vision. We wrote the vision and made it plain. There was so much that we didn’t know what to write. He gives us the pieces. We are obedient as we build the plane while we fly it.
It is heavy work.”
“Therapists are still people. We are not the healers! God uses us in the healing process.” There are inconsistencies in our lives. The team has their own therapists. We carry the weighty thoughts of others. Hence, it is important to establish healthy boundaries.
“We are therapists who get the client.”
“Aaron and Janell Lane are a living testament to reaping the fruits of obedience. The Lanes’ have established themselves as trusted clinicians in the Summit City where you cannot have a platform related to Mental Health in the African American community without Aaron and Janell at the table. They have been gracious in sharing the trials as well as the victories with me. God has favored me to develop around obedience and work amongst those who look like me. The ability to watch the project grow from an idea on a piece of paper is amazing,” said Raphael Bosley, LMHC, Licensed Therapist with Courageous Healing, Inc.
Courageous Healing has received a $1 million dollar grant to establish a mobile crisis unit. According to the Journal Gazette, Aaron Lane said he expects to hire, train and mobilize a response team of seven or eight people by June 2026. The goal is to reduce the number of times mentally ill individuals end up in the emergency room or in jail.”
The grant was one of five awarded through the Mobile Crisis Accelerator Program. The program is part of a statewide initiative “to ensure every Hoosier has access to compassionate, immediate mental health intervention, improving both public health and safety statewide.”
The accelerator program’s website lists the following statistics:
• 1 in 4 people with a serious mental illness has been arrested.
• 90,000 Hoosiers aged 12-17 have depression.
• 4.5 million Indiana residents are without access to mental health professionals.
Aaron and Janell Lane founded Courageous Healing in 2014 and became non-profit in 2019. The brick-and-mortar counseling center opened in 2021 on South Anthony where they have served 1,000 clients with a 90% retention rate. In 2023, Courageous Healing provided an estimated 2,678 hours of individual and group counseling which includes 325 clients for individual counseling.
“We want to be in the pocket of God’s will as we walk through the journey of transformation.” said Aaron and Janell Lane.
For more information, please visit the following website: Courageous Healing, Inc. (260)255-3514, info@courageoushealing.org